Aquina Asia : As in "echinacea." The final drawing I did for my talk on herbal medicine.

Echinacea is promoted as an "immuno-booster." But in controlled studies in the Western hemisphere it has yet to show any real impact on cold, flus, or any condition whatsoever.

It does have real effects on the immune system, enough so that it is contra-indicated in TB, sarcoid and leukemic states, and it has stimulated white blood cells in the test tube, but any BENEFICIAL use of this root, like much of alternative medicine, has yet to be proven.

The drawing is a feisty Korean girl. In her hair is an echinacea flower. "Echino" actually means "hedgehog" in Greek, I read. So I made her hair spikey that way.

The mask on her face represents the disproven anti-flu and anti-cold effects the manufacturers like to tout for echinacea. People in Korea occasionally wear such masks on the streets as well, because of paranoid fears of air pollution and/or catching colds (air pollution IS pretty bad in Seoul though).

The "NOH CPR" is a comment on the "do or die" bravado of some of my characters. "Noh" is both a Korean surname and a Japanese one.

Her shirt says "tough" in Korean ("tun tun han") down the side.

Boxing is also becoming a popular sport in Korea. You see it in many movies and music videos. Moreso than tae kwon do these days.